France to pay family carers £45 daily wage.

[Joe Chi Minh]

The headline of a small article in yesterday's UK Daily Mail. This is the nub of it:

"CARERS who take time off work to look after dying relatives are to receive payments from the French government. French law already allows citizens to take up to six months of unpaid leave to care for a dying family member. A bill passed yesterday in the lower house of parliament would allow anyone who leaves work in such circumstances to receive £45 a day for up to three weeks.

The law's authors estimate the Bill would affect about 20,000 families a year and cost around £16 million.



The dying, 'reassured and at home, will be able to depart more serenely', she said. And their carers, 'partially liberated from material demands, will be able to depart more serenely', she said.

'Some lawmakers expressed disappointment that the law only concerns those who die at home. Three quarters of deaths occur in hospitals, and most often without the presence of loved ones', said Socialist Gaetan Gorce.

The Bill now goes to the Senate, where it is likely to pass."

And this, mark you, AT A TIME WHEN FRANCE, LIKE THE REST OF THE WORLD, IS FACING AN ECONOMIC DEPRESSION OF SEEMINGLY INCACULABLE PROPORTIONS AND DURATION.

Know what I think? I think they're deliberately mocking, making sport of the Mammon-worshipping lawmakers of the UK and the US, and of our Anglo-American economic model.

[DCKit]

1. Teh Evil French, at it again.

What a wonderful thing to do.

[Joe Chi Minh]

2. A leopard never changes its spots! Just like those wretches, Fidel Castro

and Ugo Chavez!

Ironically, France is technically an atheist state, but actually, it's not as simple as that, since slightly more than 75% of its population are, in fact, Catholic. Factor in the Moslems, and religious affiliations are exceedingly high.

[Tartiflette]

7. Much lower than 75%

From wikipedia: A January 2007 poll found that 51% of the French population describe themselves as Catholics (and only half of those said they believed in God), 31% as atheists, 4% as Muslims, 3% as Protestants and 1% as Jews.
This is similar to the numbers from a 2003 poll cited at the same source. It would thus appear that lack of belief outweighs belief in the country, which would be consistent with my impression of the country, having lived at the base of the Alps for the past 6 months.

[Tyrone Slothrop]

8. Bullshit

According to the CIA, it's 83-88% Catholic.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/fr.html

I think I'll trust Central Intelligence over Wikipedia.

[thecrow]

3. I'm presently caring for my elderly parents

I've been here since January 1.
It's hard work and I am learning a lot.
I lost my job on Dec 28th, so evefryone voted me the best person to come care for them.
I am far from home and I think this will probably cause me to lose my house.
Yet.... our government has no provision to take care of me while I take care of them.
Amazing. Vive la France!

[Joe Chi Minh]

5. I feel for you. When read things like this I think of the expression,"Flog a

willing horse." It's strange how life works that way. Often the most vulnerable, and they will bear the heaviest crosses.

Strangest of all, though, I believe, is that in ways we can't understand in this life, we get out of life what we want to. There is a higher purpose, to which we respond, or we don't - and the values of this world are most deceptive. "I have seen the wicked man in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree."

[pipi_k]

4. Didn't need the money, but

when my MIL was here for the six months before she died, we sure could have used some help with stuff like housekeeping, respite care (so we could get out a couple of hours a week) and some other things.

We did finally get those things after an ER doctor diagnosed her with renal failure and signed her up for hospice care. This, incidentally, was something her ACTUAL doctor would not do. She was 93 at the time. Had broken a hip for the second time. Was suffering from dementia and small TIA's and had other health issues. The prognosis for broken hips in the elderly is averaged at six months. Yet her regular doctor refused to admit her to hospice.

Anyway, Mr P and I are both retired, so we didn't have to take time off work or anything, but the people from hospice care really made a difference for us and the rest of the family.


PS...kudos to France for doing the right thing

[kath]

6. Those EEEEE-VUL Socialists!!

[LeftishBrit]

9. Actually it's those EEEE-VUL moderate Conservatives, but I suppose the Republican Right would regard

them as pretty much the same thing!